Burial at Sea ep 2 Review: heureux, heureux à en mourir

And with that, Irrational games is dead. The studio that personally justified my jump to the last generation, and breathed life in into a fictional world that's up there with wonderland and middle earth, is "restructuring."

Though this may not mean that the Bioshock series is "over," it's creator has washed his hands of it, and whoever takes up the mantle next will have a target the size of the entire critical community on his/her back. But there is one morsel left, the finale of Infinite's story DLC: Burial at Sea. A stealth based romp through Rapture's secret prison and a teary farewell to both Rapture and Columbia.

I know the general reception has been tepid, and I happen to agree with the majority of their points. The plot gets lost more than Carmon Santiago in a Where's Waldo convention, and the ret-conning of Fitzroy's homicidal motivation is as hamfisted as it is unnecessary. I've always thought the turn of Fitzroy from humble people's champion while in hiding, to tunnel visioned murderer in victory; was not only an accurate portrayal of actual uprisings, but a damning commentary of how violence begets violence ad infinitum. Really, a foreshadowing of the finale's multi-dimensional dilemma.

And while I had hoped Burial would at least answer more questions that it raised, and that we'd get treated to a heapin' helping of Andrew Ryan one last time, both of those hopes were dashed. I walked out more confused than I went in (why the hell do we care about SALLY?!), and Ryan only makes the one cameo. But you know what? This wasn't about giving me what I expected. I wasn't expecting the opening sequence to be so beautiful, so hilarious, and just so goddamned perfect. I wasn't expecting to see so much of ol' Frankie Fontaine, I will play though episode 2 just to see his last scene again. It's also just so goddamned perfect.

Hey it's the rumbler! Levine almost referenced Bioshock 2! That must have been painful for him.

I didn't think you could so easily remix Infinite's combat to strictly a stealth affair so easily. But it works like a charm. Playing as Elizibeth, but without her tear powers, is a world apart from Booker's bullet hell repertoire. But once you get oriented, Rapture becomes a much more dangerous and satisfying place. I'd say the whole episode lasts a solid 6 hours, if you really want to root around for plasmid upgrades and secrets. But but the real focus is on the story. As occasionally disappointing as it is, everyone is on point and the dialogue is razor sharp. I knew there were missing pieces here and there (Atlus sets you up to raid Ryan's compound and it never really happens), but I didn't care. They say a great movie is one with 3 good scenes and no bad ones. By that logic, Burial at Sea was a fine conclusion.

There's a fun stealth shooter/survival game underneath it's story driven exterior. But all you'll remember, and care about, is whether or not it ends. Whether it ends well and whether it sets itself up for a sequel. The answer is yes. This is a definitive end for Ken Levine's Bioshock titles. I liked it. I'll definitely play it again and have just as much fun with it. The fact I'll probably never see a game with this kind of budget from Mr. Levine again is saddening.

It feels like he's just getting started. It's a damn shame this is where he and Bioshock part ways. Even if you hated Infinite you owe it to yourself to see what they've done here. Even if you're disappointed, you'll still be fascinated. Because there are 3 perfect moments that will make it all worth it.

And with that, I say goodbye to Bioshock. Most likely, forever.

I did it. I finally shot up with an MMO.

I love video games. That's not a secret, and while I wouldn't describe what I do to be much of a problem, I do know what I can be capable of. Say, after a nasty break up, I'd fall down a civilization hole for a few weeks. So I always made a point to stay away from MMO's. One; because I don't need to know if they'd become an issue for me, and two, I'm not going to subscribe to something I'd already dropped 60 bones on.

This, compounded with the fact I find the vast majority of high fantasy (elves, dwarfs, etc.) beyond tedious, meant nothing in the genre caught my eye regardless. But The Secret World looked different. It threw the typical swords and sorcery bunk out the window and sank it's teeth into techno myths. That originality and possibility sounded like something I'd end up at least appreciating. But there was both a hefty subscription and tepid reviews, both of which have reversed* in the last couple years. The subscription is gone and it's unsung creative successes floated to the surface. Then Steam sold the game, all it's major dlc, and some starting loot for $20.

Even if it physically bit me in the ass, it was a steal. I mean, The Last Remnant made my CPU scream like the shoe from Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but that was under $4 so... I honestly didn't mind. I also don't mind TSW so far. The writing's ok, the story doesn't start with a lore dump, and I'm getting the hang of the camera movement. I can't see myself getting addicted though, and it's just as well. If it wasn't for Steam I'd never have even given this genre the time of day. That's why I love those guys.

*I mean, look at those user reviews.

 I am for this kind of batsh*t enemy design, ALL. DAY. LONG.

Noah rises to the top of the box office.

It's always interesting to see what happens to these kinds of movies financially. Religious/Atheist hemming and hawing aside, there's only one kind of faith that runs Hollywood and it is in the all mighty dollar. The short answer is, this did pretty well for itself. The long answer is it grossed about 44.5 million and averaged a B on cinema score.

I like this news for a couple reasons. One, that reactionary criticism from both sides didn't dampen America's interest in a really weird movie. Two, it could open the flood gates (sorry) for some crazy gnostic gospel adaptations. Three, I like Darren Aronofsky, even though he seemed to get away with a metric ton of wholesale plagiarism. But you know, he's still pretty great overall, and he did buy the rights to perfect blue so... yeah that's fair, I guess. So good for Noah, it sounds like a solid time at the movies. I'll probably see it eventually, and the fact Noah eventually turns into Jack Nicholson from the shining sounds amazing. I mean, the guy left every human outside of his family to drown. That would make most of us one wave short of a ship wreck... again, sorry.

Dungeon of the Endless: It's very nearly almost totally ready!

For the last couple of months I've been fooling around in the early access of Dungeon of the Endless. A procedurally-generated turn-based rogue-like tower-defense RPG. That's a hell of a mouthful, but over the last couple of weeks it's managed to become one hell of a game.

It's not technically finished yet, but what's on sale is well worth the asking price. Once you get your head around the strengths and weakness of your convicts; then learn how to ration your food, (level up juice) industry, (tower defense tokens) and science, (for SCIENCEING!) you'll be in too deep to let go.

I guarantee the first time you find the exit to level 2, you will die both quickly and hilariously. Then you'll start again, and again, and again. I'm having a blast in there and I hope you'll feel the same.

Get the Founder Pack, you know you want to...

Burial At Sea Ep: 2 Impressions

Curiouser and curiouser...

If this is the way Irrational sings it's swan song, I'll be absolutely fine with that. The storied studio closes not with a RAGE- like whimper, but a competent and re-invigorating bang. Booker is dead, both of them, and only Elizabeth is left to finish what she started at the end of Infinite.

What that is exactly, I don't really know. Something to do with a little sister named Sally. But the confused motivation aside, this is incredible fan service. Atlas is back, as is Ryan, and Dr. Suchong is now more prominent than ever. It bears mentioning that all the old actors have reprized their roles, and that's almost priceless for me. If this DLC series were part of a kickstarter, I'd seriously consider coughing up $150. That's the kind of quality you'll see in episode 2.

Where the first episode struggled to cram Infinite's freewheeling combat into Rapture's focused survival vibe; the second decides to be a stealth game. Elizabeth can't just whack an enemy to death, and has a knock out/noisemaker crossbow in her arsenal. It's not just a great remix, it feels like completely different game, one that could support a play time twice as long as this should be (about 4-5 hours).

I would recommend the season pass even if you didn't like Infinite half as much as I did. This is easily $40 worth of world building, even if it isn't worth that much in length. This is Irrational at the very top of their game and they will be truly missed.

What I'm watching.

Hannibal's back and better than ever, (and I'd really like gush over that human bee hive last week) but something else has my complete and rapt attention.  That thing is Cosmos, and it's much better than I dared hoped.

I'm no stranger to PBS and NOVA, which means I'm no stranger to Neil Degrasse Tyson, so I thought I knew what to expect from his update to Segan's masterpiece. I thought I'd catch up to it eventually when there was nothing better on. I love me some NOVA, but it's not exactly appointment viewing for me. The stunning fact Seth McFarland got this on FOX in the primmest possible time slot should have been a sign for me. Seth has serious pull, but not a 13 episode, 9:00 on a Sunday, pull. Somewhere along the line, this gorgeous documentary series turned some suits into true believers. Whether it was financially or philosophically, I don't care. Because this documentary came to play.

It looks amazing and Silvestri's soundtrack soars over the heads of most feature films, but that's not what really hooked me. The script is, as they say, dynamite. I'm not ashamed to admit it moved me in ways a sermon never has. Not to say it was a religious experience, but I sit here now genuinely inspired over the size and scope of our universe. I knew the broad stokes about the magnitude of our galaxy swimming in a sea of other galaxies. But Neil breaks it all down so eloquently, I got a little choked up when it got to the "your god is too small" portion.

That being said, it's a little too patronizing at times. The catholic inquisition are basically treated like monsters, and while it's not like that comparison is unfair, it needlessly hands ammo to it's critics. Also it brings up fossil fuels to rib the audience about global warming for a sentence and drops it. It really should have picked it's battles better.

But I don't care, as I said before, I am rapt. It's just so cool without trying too hard and without dumbing anything down. I'm going to tear through the backlog and shake nervously until next Sunday. I'm just swooning over here, man.

Captain America 2 is apparently fantastic.

"Hey! Did you guys see me on Kings? Anyone remember Kings? It was really good... anyone?"

The embargo broke today and the critics are mostly falling over themselves talking about how much they love it. Its written and directed by the Russo brothers, who have an impressive list of credits, (animal practice not withstanding) come from a predominately documentary/comedy background. The word on the street is it manages to blend a political thriller with a character piece, with an action heavy super hero power struggle.

So yeah, Rotten Tomatoes is burning for it, and it looks like this will answer for the half baked shrug that was called Thor 2. Sounds good. I can't wait to see this juggling act in action.